A blog about patent, copyright and trademark law in the U.S. District Court
for the Southern District of New York

Motion for Reconsideration on Attorneys' Fees Denied

In a June 4, 2013 ruling, Judge Richard Sullivan denied reconsideration of a $10,000 award of attorneys’ fees against a pro se copyright plaintiff.  The plaintiff had argued that reconsideration was warranted because the Court incorrectly applied the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA) to the works at issue, and that the Court had erred in concluding that the plaintiff had intentionally manipulated certain images to make them appear more similar to images made by the defendant.  In denying reconsideration, Judge Sullivan noted “the upshot of the Court’s analysis of VARA was to reject one of Defendants’ arguments in favor of fees,” and that “there can be no question that Plaintiff did intentionally manipulate images to enhance alleged similarities between her work” and that of the defendant.
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